Examples of the present disclosure are related generally to structural brackets for buildings, and specifically to brackets for installing and supporting a variety of structures to residential and commercial buildings including decks for residential applications.
Numerous structures can be attached to the outside of residential building including, but not limited to, decks, overhangs, awnings, and roofs. These features are often installed ten or more feet above the ground. As a result, failure of the attachment system between the deck and the building, for example, has resulted in property damage, injury, and even death. Traditionally, decks have been attached to structures (e.g., houses or commercial buildings) with bolts, screws, or other means attaching a deck ledger board to an exterior wall or rim board of the building. The deck ledger is generally parallel to, and fastened to, the rim board of the structure. To save time and money, however, some builders may attach the ledger board directly to the brick, stone, or siding by screws or lag bolts. Attachment to these veneer-type surfaces, which are intended only to provide an aesthetically pleasing building exterior, is structurally unsound and violates local and national building codes.
Because of the risk of “pull-out,” or detachment of the deck structure from the building, caused by improper installation techniques, most local and national building codes require that the deck ledger board be through-bolted to the rim board with suitable bolts, nuts, and washers. This is achieved by drilling through the rim board and the ledger board and then bolting them together. Due to the weight and size of the ledger board, this can entail some skill and/or multiple workers to hold the ledger board in place while the mounting holes are being drilled through both boards. Drilling through both boards at the same time, however, enables the bolt holes to align in both boards. Due to the extra time and manpower required, however, some builders may avoid this step despite code requirements.
What is needed, therefore, is a structural system that enables the ledger board, and other deck components, to be attached to the building in a manner consistent with local and/or national building codes. The system should enable quick and precise installation of the ledger board, deck structure, guard or hand rails, and other components, while reducing or maintaining the cost and labor required for installation (i.e., over improper, or “non-conforming” techniques). It is to such systems and methods that examples of the present disclosure are primarily directed.